The Association of University Centers on Disabilities is a national organization which supports university centers for excellence in the research, study, and solving problems relationship to improve developmental disabilities, child health, and maternal health. The mission of the association revolves around providing assistance for the members through advocating for and developing programs and policies to guide healthcare and general care for people with developmental disabilities, alongside their families and the community.
Autism is a major disorder among both children and young adults. ASD mostly affects an individual’s ability to make new associations and communicate effectively. Extensive research has been done to find effective ways to treat, and manage autism especially among children in their formative years. AUCD has recently found the urgency to explore more research on the relationship between ASD and psychological development among young adults (12-30 years).
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Lifespan Development
According to research conducted by Volkmar et al. (2014), the number of young adults living with ASD in the United States is projected to scale up in the next decade. Therefore, this is an implication that the situation will only get worse and deserves dire attention in these early times before it becomes a crisis. Generally, development of new relationships and associations with people and mastering effective communication approaches and skills is a tall order for most normal people. ASD patients naturally struggle with this problem too which means that their situation is even worse than that of a normal person. As much as a lot has already been covered on the subject, there is need to conduct substantive research on the impact of condition on the psychological development of young adults to find new ways to assist them, their families, and the community. In this way, a direct relationship with lifespan development is established.
Theory and Research
According to Erik Erikson's theoretical concept of psychosocial development, there exists eight stages of development in lifespan development of a human being. Among these stages is the identity versus role confusion stage which begins immediately an individual hit the adolescent stage (Cherry, 2018). During this stage, an individual is exposed to who they really are as a person, that is, they get to understand their bodies in physical, emotional, and mental perspectives, they comprehend their beliefs and principles, and also discover the role they play within the society. At this stage, role confusion sets in when an individual is unable to identify themselves, or rather conform to other identities from the external locus such as friends, parents, or celebrities. Individuals with autism already have psychosocial development problems from onset, hence this stage even becomes much harder for them compared to normal people. Individuals with autism have impaired development in social interactions, which affects their ability to build relationships.
Behavioral theory states that a person's actions are more influenced by their interaction with the environment and themselves (Nason & Gras, 2018). In the latter case, the environment is mostly the people around, or events within the society. Therefore, given the impairment exhibited by ASD individuals, behavioral development even becomes harder for them.
Findings and Methods
Lilly Schmidt et al. (2015) authored a research article called, 'Psychosocial Functioning and Life Satisfaction in Adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder without Intellectual Impairment.' Lilly Schmidt among other researchers who participated in the study aimed to establish a comparison between psychosocial functioning of ASD adults and individuals not medically diagnosed for ASD to identify key areas that influence life satisfaction in adults with ASD. The study used a total of 43 adults with autism without intellectual deficiencies and 44 individuals without ASD. The average age of individual used for the study was 31 years. The study found that individuals with ASD exhibited immense functional impairments and minimal satisfaction about their lives compared to individuals who did not have ASD. Impairments were mainly noted in the following domains: interaction with people, social participation, self-care, and rapport development. However, nonclinical individuals were also found to experience these problems but only less intense than that observed in ASD individuals. Participation in society was used as a determinant for satisfaction with life.
Wilkins & Watson (2009) conducted a study with the objective of examining the social relation skills profiles of adults with ASD and those without, also, on the basis of whether they had intellectual impairments or not. Using MANOVA statistical tools, individuals with autism, PDD, and those with intellectual impairments were assessed on seven universal measures of social behavior. Each group comprised of 72 individuals. The study found that individuals with autism displayed the highest deficits and impairments in social skills measurement scale, followed by PDD individuals. Therefore, these results supported the notion that social impairment is a primary feature, or, symptom among ASD adults with or without intellectual deficiencies.
Lastly, a study by Knott et al. (2006) in understanding the relationship between social interaction and ASD in adults utilized two structured surveys which were issued to parents with young adults with ASD. Parents rated their children based on their conversation skills and abilities, emotional reciprocity, and the status of their peer relationships. Based on the results of the findings, 19 individuals with ASD reported problems in building social relations including social engagement and anger management. These attributes affected most of their friendships and association with their peers.
Implications for Services Development
Research on the long-term results of social interaction and communication impairment among young adults could impact in a great way the perception of the society towards individuals living with ASD. Instead of being perceived as an abnormality, the situation can be viewed as a platform to trigger help solutions towards the problem. Further research could be essential in provision of significant insights into the problems faced by individuals with ASD, hence contributing towards development of significant tools to help them establish better ways to participate in the society and interact with other people around them.
Research conducted by Piven et al. (2011) also supports these sentiments by stating the importance of understanding the minute contributors of deficiency in social interaction among ASD adults. According to their research, it is crucial to understand the biological, psychological, epidemiological, and social aspects directly related to ASD in young adults to effectively build platforms to meet their needs.
Recommendations
Young adults with ASD would greatly benefit from outcomes of additional research carried out to identify specific factors that are responsible for the extreme psychosocial deficiencies among individuals with ASD without intellectual impairments. Such efforts would be of major assistance in development of effective communication and social interaction models for adults with ASD. In the long run, this research could help young adults reach their optimal abilities in social interaction and identification of self. Also, interventions facilitating social inclusion for people with ASD will help on a broader scale.
References
Cherry, K. (2018). Erik erikson's stages of psychosocial development.
Knott, F., Dunlop, A. W., & Mackay, T. (2006). Living with ASD: How do children and their parents assess their difficulties with social interaction and understanding? Autism, 10(6), 609-617.
Nason, R. S., Bacq, S., & Gras, D. (2018). A behavioral theory of social performance: Social identity and stakeholder expectations. Academy of Management Review, 43(2), 259-283.
Piven, J., Rabins, P., & Autism‐in‐Older Adults Working Group. (2011). Autism spectrum disorders in older adults: Toward defining a research agenda. Journal of the American Geriatrics Society, 59(11), 2151-2155.
Schmidt, L., Kirchner, J., Strunz, S., Broźus, J., Ritter, K., Roepke, S., & Dziobek, I. (2015). Psychosocial functioning and life satisfaction in adults with autism spectrum disorder without intellectual impairment. Journal of Clinical Psychology, 71(12), 1259-1268.
Volkmar, F. R., Reichow, B., & McPartland, J. C. (2014). Adolescents and adults with autism spectrum disorders. New York: Springer.
Wilkins, J., & Matson, J. L. (2009). A comparison of social skills profiles in intellectually disabled adults with and without ASD. Behavior modification, 33(2), 143-155.
